edfan12fandomcom-20200214-history
Con Air
''Con Air ''is an 1997 American action-thriller film directed by Simon West and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. It stars Nicolas Cage, John Cusackand John Malkovich. The film borrows its title from the nickname of the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System. While scanning a newspaper article, Screenwriter Scott Rosenberg first learned of the special program, then visited its Oklahoma City base "to get an eyewitness perspective of the incredible operation, which quickly formed the genesis for Con Air." [1] Plot Former U.S. Army Ranger Cameron Poe is sentenced to a maximum-security federal penitentiary for using excessive force and killing a drunk man who had been attempting to assault his pregnant wife, Tricia. Eight years later, Poe is paroled on good behavior, and eager to see his daughter Casey whom he has never met. Poe is arranged to be flown back home to Alabama on the C-123 Jailbird where he will be released on landing; several other prisoners, including his diabetic cellmate and friend Mike "Baby-O" O'Dell and criminal mastermind Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, as well as Grissom's right-hand man, Nathan Jones, are also being transported to a new Supermax prison. DEA agent Duncan Malloy wishes to bring aboard one of his agents, Willie Sims, as a prisoner to coax more information out of drug lord Francisco Cindino before he is incarcerated. Vince Larkin, the U.S. Marshal overseeing the transfer, agrees to it, but is unaware that Malloy has armed Sims with a gun. Shortly after takeoff, Grissom incites a riot that allows them to hijack the Jailbird; Sims is killed when he attempts to stop Grissom. Grissom orders the aircraft to continue to Carson City for a scheduled prisoner transfer, where they will offload the guards and pilots disguised as prisoners in the middle of a dust-storm. Although he could have left the Jailbird during the transfer, Poe feigns cooperation with Grissom but leaves a recording device from Sims' body on one of the guards being offloaded. Among the new prisoners boarding the aircraft are Cindino, who masterminded their escape, their new pilot Swamp Thing, and serial killer Garland Greene, who even has the respect of Cyrus. Grissom orders another prisoner, Joe "Pinball" Parker, to remove the transponder and plant it on another aircraft. Moments before the Jailbird takes off, the guards discover the clue Poe left behind and alert Malloy and Larkin. Pinball is unable to make it aboard the Jailbird on time and his body is lodged in the landing gear as the aircraft takes off when the security forces are alerted. Poe secretly writes a message to Larkin explaining Grissom's plan on Pinball's shirt and pushes the body out, where it lands in the middle of Fresno, California. Larkin calls for the National Guard to go to Lerner Airfield, an abandoned airbase, while using Malloy's sportscar to beat the Jailbird there. The Jailbird lands at Lerner but overshoots the runway and grounds itself in the sand. Seeing no evidence of Cindino's jet, Grissom orders the prisoners to dig the Jailbird free. Meanwhile, Poe, seeking an insulin shot for Baby-O, meets Larkin, and the two run down their respective situations. Larkin finds Cindino boarding his private jet with his men, and manages to disable the jet before it leaves. Grissom discovers Cindino's treachery and kills him. Another inmate, serial rapist Johnny 23, sees the Guard forces approaching the airfield and alerts the prisoners, who open the weapons locker on the Jailbird and set up an ambush. Larkin successfully leads the Guardsmen out of the danger, and Grissom and the remaining prisoners return to the Jailbird and take off before Poe is able to escape with Baby-O and a female guard, Sally Bishop. Grissom soon discovers Poe's true identity and prepares to kill him after shooting Baby-O. Malloy, having tracked down the Jailbird after being led astray by the transponder, opens fire on it, disabling an engine, and causing the aircraft to lose fuel. When Larkin tells Malloy about Poe's identity as a parolee, Malloy orders the gunner to hold fire. They both order the Jailbird to land at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas but a lack of fuel forces them to crash-land on The Strip instead, ending up at the lobby of the Sands Hotel. Amidst the chaos, Poe is thanked by both Baby-O and Sally for his help. Grissom, Jones, and Swamp Thing escape on a fire truck. Larkin and Poe spots them and gives a chase, eventually killing all three escapees; Jones being hit by a motorbike, Swamp Thing hurtling through the windshield and being run over, and Grissom crushed by a pounder in a construction site. Poe finally reunites with Tricia and meets his daughter after he expresses his full trust to Larkin. All of the surviving convicts are recaptured, except for Garland Greene, who escapes and is last seen playing craps in a casino. Cast As appearing in Con Air, (main roles and screen credits identified): *Nicolas Cage as Cameron Poe **The main protagonist of the film. **Crime: Killing a drunken man **Sentence: 8-10 years in prison **Status: Paroled due to good behaviour *John Cusack as U.S. Marshal Vince Larkin *John Malkovich as Cyrus Grissom (known as "Cyrus the Virus") **The main antagonist of this film **Crime: Murder **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Crushed by a pounder *Steve Buscemi as Garland Greene (known as "The Marietta Mangler") **Crime: Cannibalism **Sentence: Not known **Status: Presumably paroled *Ving Rhames as Nathan Jones (known as "Diamond Dog") **Crime: Murder **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Hit by a motorcycle *Nick Chinlund as William Bedford (known as "Billy Bedlam") **Crime: Murder **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Impaled to death *Rachel Ticotin as Guard Sally Bishop *Colm Meaney as DEA Agent Duncan Malloy *M. C. Gainey as "Swamp Thing" **Crime: Robbery **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Run over by a car *Brendan Kelly as Conrad **Crime: Not known **Sentence: Not known **Status: Recaptured *Mykelti Williamson as Mike O'Dell (known as "Baby-O") **Crime: Not known **Sentence: Not known **Status: In hospital *Danny Trejo as Johnny Baca (known as "Johnny-23") **Crime: Raping 23 women **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Plane crash, his arm is severed *Renoly Santiago as Ramon Martinez (known as "Sally Can't Dance"), credited as "Renoly". **Crime: Not known **Sentence: Not known **Status: Recaptured *Jesse Borrego as Francisco Cindino **Crime: Drug trafficking **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Burned alive by Grissom's cigarette after doused in gasoline and betraying Grissom. *Dave Chappelle as Joe Parker (known as "Pinball"), credited as "David Chappelle". **Crime: Arson Remove the transponder on the Jailbird and place it on another one. **Sentence: Not known **Status: Deceased **Cause of death: Presumably a heart attack, his body gets lodged in the landing gear and he is thrown off by Poe with a message saying that the ''Jailbird ''has been hijacked. *John Marshall Jones as "Gator" **Crime: Not known **Sentence: Not known **Status: Recaptured *Steve Eastin as Guard Falzon *José Zúñiga as DEA Agent Willie Sims *Kevin Gage as Billy Joe (Uncredited) *Jeris Lee Poindexter as convict on plane *Monica Potter as Tricia Poe *Landry Allbright as Casey Poe *Mike Howell as Rim Feagles *Don S. Davis as Man driving Volvo References